


of caramel lattes and inked skin

by cherryraindrops



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: M/M, coffee shop AU, not enough to tag though, some minor Mavin and Jackeoff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-17
Updated: 2019-02-04
Packaged: 2019-08-24 19:35:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16646390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryraindrops/pseuds/cherryraindrops
Summary: Jeremy Dooley is the proud owner of Achievement Coffee, a little shop hidden away in downtown Los Santos. During a rather slow business day, the rain outside brings in someone who Jeremy decides is his new favorite regular.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> anonymous request on tumblr: meeting at a coffee shop au for jeremwood! i would love to see how you write it, coffee shop aus are my shittt
> 
> Hope you enjoy!!

The rain outside was refusing to let up well into the afternoon. It had started with a light sprinkling when Jeremy had first arrived that morning to open the shop, the sun not even in the sky as he felt a bit of moisture hit his nose. That should have been his first sign that today was not going to be a good day. Rain usually meant no customers, which meant Jeremy and whomever else was currently scheduled for the morning shift were going to be bored completely out of their minds until the afternoon.

When it didn’t let up when Michael arrived, Jeremy knew he was never going to hear the end of it.

“Why is it so quiet in here?” He asks as he leans against the counter, looking around the empty shop with a frown. “I feel like I just arrived at someone’s freaking funeral.”

Jack snorts from her spot near the latte machine, where she’s finished up what Jeremy can only guess is her third cup of the day. “You have. It’s my funeral, because as of an hour ago I have officially died of complete boredom.” She takes a sip out of her cup and sighs. “Not even this latte can save me.”

Michael was a regular customer around Achievement Coffee since it’s conception. At first Jeremy was certain the only reason Michael bothered with coming in was to fuel his caffeine addiction that was, frankly, disturbing to watch. Jeremy didn’t necessarily mind feeding into the addiction if it helped make the place money, but the satisfaction of it all vanished the minute he realized every time Michael game in, it was _Gavin_ working the register.

It didn’t help that Gavin was equally flirtatious with the man, which made it harder to keep the two of them apart. He guesses he can deal with the annoyance of their ‘will they won’t they’ relationship if it meant Michael kept shoveling money into the company.

He also has Michael to thank for Jack being an employee. She was one of Michael’s childhood best friends, coming in one afternoon to see exactly why Michael was so invested in the place to come in every single day and blow too much money on a mediocre cup of coffee. By the end of the business day Jeremy had managed to convince her that his coffee was the best in Los Santos and bring her into the company as a barista to further perfect it.  

“You’d think people would want to come in for shelter,” Michael notes, taking the mug of black coffee from Jeremy and downing a large gulp. The action makes Jeremy flinch, but Michael doesn’t seem all too bothered. “I’ve seen plenty of people out walking around, holding newspaper over their heads like morons. Plus, you have free Wi-Fi!” He tosses a couple of dollars into the tip jar beside the register, Jeremy removing it and stuffing the cash into his apron.

“That explains why you are always here,” Jeremy says, earning one of Michael’s infamous eye rolls in the process. “Or maybe you are scaring off our customers. Most of them are from your garage, you know.”

“Don’t remind me,” Michael groans, taking another sip of his mug. “Every time someone arrives late they always have a cup of your coffee in their hands. I’m going to have to start holding you accountable for their tardiness.”

While Michael was a loyal customer, he was also the owner of a well-known bike garage a few blocks away from the shop. He provided a good majority of Los Santos gangs with their bikes on the down low, keeping up the façade of a wholesome bike garage for the LSPD by working on their own police bikes and vehicles, all while secretly modifying the bikes and vehicles of gangs surrounding the area to better avoid getting caught. Jeremy was never one to snitch on a friend, himself dealing with some of the gangs every now and then within the shop. In Los Santos, if you hadn’t dealt with one the gangs now, you certainly will sometime in the future.

The bell on the front door lets out a loud ring, stopping Jeremy mid response as he turns his head to welcome the brand-new customer. “Welcome to Achievement Coffee! What can I get started for you?”

The moment the man raises his head to look up at him, Jeremy scrambles to not let his jaw hit the floor. He’s being completely ridiculous, acting like some high schooler whose crush just entered the same room and they cannot seem to act natural. It didn’t help that the boy was incredibly gorgeous, and Jeremy really was only human.

The man removes the hood of his wet jacket, shaking his long blonde hair out as he looks up at Jeremy with a rather shy smile. “A caramel latte, thank you. Um, in a mug if you can. I’d rather not head back out in the rain for a bit.” He removes his jacket carefully, shaking it to remove excess water. Jeremy goes to pen his mouth, finally say something, but Jack is already stepping in.

“Can’t say I blame you,” Jack speaks up, leaning and giving Jeremy a wink. “I’ll pay for his drink this time, Jeremy.” She grabs one of the mugs and some milk, darting off towards the machines and getting to work. Jeremy rolls his eyes at her, punching in the drink to the system underneath Jack’s employee tab.

“Please don’t let her do that,” the man tells Jeremy, pulling out a few dollar bills and handing them over. “Do I need to give you my name for the order?”

Before Jeremy can even bother, Jack is sliding in again. “Considering you are the only customer here, I’m sure he can figure it out,” Jack interjects, making Jeremy close his mouth and frown. “Can’t you Jeremy?”

This was the last thing Jeremy needed right now. While this was far more exciting then the rest of the morning had been, by far, he really didn’t want to spend his time watching Jack shamelessly flirt with a customer right in front of him. “Don’t you have a caramel latte you need to make?” He says casually, handing the man his change.

Jack narrows her eyes at him, which has the man laughing behind his hand. A shame, Jeremy thinks. The man probably has a beautiful smile behind it. “Pardon me for wanting to treat a friend, Jeremy.” She turns back towards the machines, grabbing some of the caramel drizzle and setting it on the counter. “How have you been, Ryan? Haven’t seen you around in a while.”

Jeremy raises an eyebrow, watching as the man, Ryan, places his change in his wallet before stuffing it into his back pocket. “Been out of town running some errands for Geoff, just got back in a couple of days ago and was craving caffeine.”  He holds his hand out for Jeremy. “I’m Ryan, one of Jack’s friends. Sorry about her.”

His hands are strong, calloused. “Jeremy, I, um, own the place.” He goes to pull his hand away, but Ryan keeps a firm hold on it, eyes tracing the tattoo along Jeremy’s wrist. It’s not the weirdest thing a customer has done, but that doesn’t mean Jeremy isn’t blushing like a complete fool.

“I really like your tattoo,” Ryan tells him, fingers tracing the design wrapped around Jeremy’s wrist. Gavin has a matching one around his left bicep, the two of them getting them together back when they had graduated college to celebrate. Looking back, it seemed a little stupid to get matching tattoos, but it remained a fond memory of their friendship. “Where did you get this done?”

“Boston, where I grew up,” Jeremy explains, Ryan letting go of his wrist. Jeremy rolls the sleeves up on his long sleeve shirt, heading back towards the machines and nudging Jack out of the way to finish Ryan’s drink. “An old friend of mine did it himself, designed it. He passed away a few years ago, and his shop closed afterwards. It’s a nice little thing to have to remember him by.” That had been a rough month for Jeremy and Gavin when Joel had passed, mostly because the man was practically family throughout their college careers. He was a great mentor as Jeremy suffered through exams, always offering a helping hand to the two when they needed it most. Hell, it was Joel that had encouraged Jeremy to open Achievement Coffee in the first place. The man did more for Jeremy and Gavin than their own families did, and Jeremy was grateful.

Ryan appears solemn. “I’m sorry to heart that, it’s really a beautiful piece of work. It’s a shame he isn’t around anymore.”

Jeremy hums, but doesn’t properly respond. He hands the finished latte over to Ryan with a friendly smile, one that he’s trained to do with every customer. “One caramel latte, in a mug.”

Ryan grabs the mug gently from Jeremy, bringing it up to his lips and taking a small sip. He releases a pleased moan, which Jeremy hates goes straight to places he wishes it _wouldn’t._ “This is incredible. Why haven’t I been in here before?” He takes another drink, humming around the rim of the mug before setting it back down with a satisfied smile. “You’ve got yourself a brand new regular, Jeremy.”

Jeremy had plenty of regulars who came through Achievement Coffee on occasion. That was one of the many reasons he managed to keep the store open for so long, by gaining a following with his excellent concoctions and friendly demeanor no matter who the customer was.

Now he had Ryan to welcome into his bevy of regulars, and Jeremy was certain that he would be a favorite.

**

Ryan comes in again the next day, though there is someone else with him.

Jeremy had been cleaning up the back after a particularly overwhelming afternoon rush. It had only been him and Jack working up front, and even with two hands on deck things were still rather hectic. While most of the tables had been cleared off and the mugs had been running through the dishwasher, there was still so many things that needed to be cleaned and prepped before they could sit back and relax. The bell ringing from the front was the only thing that could tear him away from finishing the dishes in the back.

With the Los Santos sun making an appearance outside, Ryan was dressed far more casually than he had been the day before. A pair of shorts showed off his rather long legs, and a plain black tank top displayed an intricate sleeve of tattoos. His hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail, displaying his features that were hidden the day before.

The man beside Ryan looks similar, with two sleeves of tattoos, but the similarities instantly ended there. This man looked rather exhausted, an unruly beard and messy head of hair adding to the just rolled out of bed look he was sporting. He wore a white short sleeved tee and black jeans, beat up sneakers carrying him alongside Ryan to the counter.

Whoever this man was, Jeremy just hoped that Ryan wasn’t dating him.

“Told you I would be back,” Ryan grins, hands stuffed into his pockets. “I brought a friend along too, because he didn’t believe me when I said this place was better than the Starbucks down the road.” He elbows his friend in the side, making the man scowl and scoff.

“You basically said this place was a god send, Ryan. Pardon me for being a little disbelieving,” the man crosses his arms across his chest, frowning as Ryan continuous to laugh. Jeremy had been right before, about Ryan having a beautiful smile. This time he wasn’t hiding it behind a hand, instead displaying it for the world to see in all of it’s glory. It made Jeremy feel warm inside just watching him.

“Well I hope that I can prove you wrong,” Jeremy tells Ryan’s friend, rolling up the sleeves of his purple button up with the hopes of a challenge. “What can I get started for you?”

“Cinnamon Dulce Latte, with an extra shot of expresso,” he says, pulling out his wallet and handing over a couple of bills. “Maybe even one of those muffins in the display case too, the one with the cranberries. Do you make those in house?”

“Damn right we do,” another voice enters the conversation, Jeremy turning to face the steamer and coming face to face with Jack, who wears a confident smile as she saunters to the counter. “Everything you see in that display case is made fresh every single morning for customers, I make sure of that. Nothing but the best for the downtown populace.” She turns to Jeremy, patting his arm with a smile. “I was just about to start up a new batch of cranberry muffins. Tell them it might be a wait.” She sends a wink the man’s way and judging by the way Ryan snickers as his friend’s face reddens, he assumes they must know each other.

Jeremy nods at Jack, turning back to Ryan and his friend with a thumb jutting out towards the direction Jack has vanished to. “She’s cooking up a fresh batch of muffins as we speak. You guys got time to wait a short minute until those are ready?”

“I’ve got time,” Ryan replies, elbowing his friend in the ribs when he scoffs. “ _Both_ of us have plenty of time. Right Geoff?”

Geoff looks as though he wants to disagree, but he doesn’t voice it. Jeremy merely shakes his head with a laugh before turning towards the steamer and getting to work on Geoff’s order. “What can I get for you, Ryan? Another caramel latte?”

“Not today,” Ryan shakes his head, leaning against the counter to watch Jeremy work. “I mostly just wanted to bring Geoff in, so he can get the full experience. Maybe you could surprise me, come up with something you think I would like?”

Jeremy stops what he’s doing to look back at Ryan, eyebrow raised. “I’m not so sure about that. I don’t know you well enough to get a good read on you, what you could like. You might not like what I end up surprising you with.”

Ryan shrugs. “Nah, I trust you enough to make me something good. Maybe if I like it enough you can put it on your secret menu or something.”

 Jeremy places the finished latte for Geoff then, a glint in his eye as he gets a good look at Ryan. “Challenge accepted, though we don’t have a secret menu. Don’t go spreading that around, okay handsome?”

The way Ryan’s cheeks flood red at Jeremy’s nickname makes Jeremy’s anxiety over saying it fade away. He doesn’t even know why he bothered to say that out loud, he’s never been straight forward before, especially not on the level Jack operated. Too late to take it back now, of course.

He turns back to the steamer before he can say anything else brave, mind already going a mile a minute on what to make Ryan. He already knows that Ryan has a thing for caramel lattes, given the way he ordered one yesterday it seemed as if that was his go to drink. An idea flashes into his mind as he looks for ingredients, getting to work as Ryan’s eyes watch him carefully.

“I can bring it out to you when it’s done, you know,” Jeremy comments, carefully measuring the amount of milk to add into the cup. “You don’t have to keep standing there if you don’t want to.”

Ryan raises an eyebrow. “What if I want to watch the master at work?”

“Wouldn’t be much of a surprise if you watched me make it, you know,” Jeremy counters, using his rather broad shoulders to cover up Ryan’s surprise drink. “Go sit with your friend until I’m done, I can’t work under pressure.”

Ryan is quiet for a minute, and Jeremy wonders if maybe he came off a little harsh. He had meant to be flirtatious, wasn’t teasing each other flirtatious? Fuck, what if he hurt Ryan’s feelings by telling him to go away? He turns, about to apologize, but Ryan doesn’t seem to be upset at all. In fact, he has a smirk on his face, arms crossed as he retorts, “Diamonds are made under pressure, you know.”

“Haven’t heard _that_ one before,” Jeremy responds with an eyeroll, making Ryan chuckle. “Go take your friend his drink before it gets cold, yeah? Don’t want him thinking we slack off here.” He watches as Ryan departs, cup in hand for Geoff, eyes tracing his long legs as he takes a seat straight across from the counter.

Geoff begins to take a sip, looking rather hesitant to do so. Jeremy can see the minute the liquid hits his tongue, the flavor spreading across his mouth and allowing him to get a full taste of Jeremy’s mastery. He can’t help but feel a bit cocky when Geoff’s face lightens up afterwards, the man looking to Ryan with what appears to be a bit of an annoyed, ‘You were right’ face.

“Muffins are ready,” Jack says from behind him, startling Jeremy slightly. She wears a smirk on her face as she peeks over at Ryan’s table, and Jeremy already knows he’s never going to hear the end of it. “Go take one over to your cute little friend already.”

“I haven’t finished his drink yet,” Jeremy mumbles, turning back towards his half-done job. “I’ll take them out there in a minute, I just have to wrap this up.”

“I can take them out there for you,” Jack offers, and Jeremy knows something mischievous is whirring in her head. “They are my friends, and I want to see if what Michael was saying was true and all.”

_What._ “Michael said something to you about Ryan?”

Jack nods, arranging two muffins onto two dessert plates. “Michael was observing the two of you when Gavin and I went out back from our break. Kept saying you were looking at as though the sun was shining out of his ass.” She holds the two plates out towards Jeremy, friendly smile on her face. “If it helps, he says Ryan couldn’t stop staring at your biceps.”

It didn’t help. He takes the two plates from Jack’s hands, instructing her to simply add a dollop of whipped cream to Ryan’s finished surprise drink before heading out towards Ryan’s table. Geoff looks to be in a better mood when he approaches, laughing along to something Ryan has said while Ryan has his head thrown back, eyes closed and looking absolutely delighted over his own joke. Just the very sight has Jeremy smiling, teeth and all, and he hadn’t even heard what Ryan had said.

“Two cranberry muffins,” Jeremy announces, placing the plates in front of the two men. “Ryan, your drink will be over shortly. Anything else I can grab for the two of you?”

He swears he hears Geoff mumbles something along the lines of water, but Ryan kicks him in the shin before Jeremy can ask him to speak up. “No thank you! That will be all, Jeremy.”

Jack comes over shortly after, Ryan’s drink in hand and a few extra napkins for the men. Jeremy knows she won’t just walk away afterwards, and he feels foolish for thinking so in the first place. “So, Geoff, Ryan says you had him out of town running some errands for you?”

Geoff nods, pulling out a chair for Jack to take a seat. “Scoping out the competition around San Andreas, wondering where my clientele has vanished to. Not very many tattoo parlors around Los Santos to take them away, so I sent Ryan to see if he noticed anything.”

“A few people keep buzzing about some new place a little outside of city limits, Funhaus. Seem like nice enough guys, even if they are screwing us over business wise.” Ryan shrugs, looking towards Jeremy and sighing. “Sorry if we are keeping Jack from working. I don’t want to distract her if you need her, Jeremy.”

Jack scoffs at Ryan’s words, waving her hand in the air dismissively. “Nonsense, Jeremy knows I’m a hard worker and wouldn’t dare try to slack off with my friends. Besides, with you becoming one of his favorite regulars, I doubt he would be angry with you. Right, Jeremy?”

The amount of restraint coursing through Jeremy’s body right now was rather painful, but he was managing. There was nothing he wanted more than to tell Jack to _please shut up,_ but he managed to maintain his customer service smile as he tells her, “Jack, I don’t play favorites around here!”

Jack winks at him, getting up with a laugh and farewell to her friends. Jeremy has decided he really hates working with her sometimes. “Enjoy your drink, Ryan,” he responds before walking back towards the counter, not bothering to tell Ryan what he put in the drink exactly. He’s sure he’ll figure it out, but he’s also sure if he spent any more time near Ryan he was possibly going to explode.

**

“You too would be cute together,” Jack tells him, after Ryan has left and they are clearing his table together. “Michael was right, too. He really could not stop staring at your biceps.”

Jeremy merely gives her the middle finger, but not before tugging down his long sleeves.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was not expecting this thing to be as popular as it has become, and I could not be more grateful. Thank you all so much for taking the time to read it and tell me your thoughts! I hope you enjoy this second part, and there might be a third? I'm not too sure yet, but I am sure I can be persuaded.

When Ryan was four years old, his mother bought him a coloring book, his very first one. Armed with only a pack of crayons and his colorful imagination, he took it upon himself to color every single blank page until the book was bursting with color. Who cared if there was no such thing as a green elephant or a purple lion? All Ryan cared about was bringing each animal in the book to life regardless of realistic portrayal.

It was his first, real experience with art, and while he was too young to decide what to do with his life, he believes that was the moment he truly decided to become an artist.

His parents had two different reactions to his decision. His mother was the district attorney, her firm representing the LSPD in all legal matters. His father had been an architect up until his passing when Ryan was fourteen. Between the two of them, it had been his father that praised the direction his son desired to go, while his mother concerned herself with Ryan’s future in the profession as being lackluster.

Two years after his father had passed away, Ryan got his first tattoo. His mother nearly had a heart attack when he came home, the black cogs on his forearm earning a rather long talk. The design was one that Ryan had drawn one day in his high school art class, starting off as a mindless doodle before he turned it into something meaningful. “To show I’m not just another cog in the machine,” he explained to his mother, who looked rather confused. “Everyone around me is a working part in a machine, being led to do certain things and to function certain ways. I don’t want to be a part of a machine, I want to be my own invention.”

His mother said it looked ridiculous, and his reasoning wasn’t exactly sound. Ryan decided he didn’t care what she thought about it. He was sure his father would have loved it, and that was all that mattered in his eyes.

Down the line he eventually got a black skull on his chest, right over his heart. That had come to be by the suggestion of a tattoo artist from his hometown, Miles. He had first met Miles back when he was sixteen, when he received his first tattoo. Ryan had fallen in love with one of Miles’s artworks in the lobby of the parlor, one of a man walking through flames with his head hung low. He called it ‘The Vagabond’, a man with no roots and wandering through the flames of hell.

“Came to me in a rather lucid dream one night,” Miles has explained as he did Ryan’s tattoo. “The best inspiration you can get, if you ask me.”

Miles was the one who encouraged Ryan to open his own tattoo parlor when he got older, if he was really interested in the art work and the job. It hadn’t been a thought in Ryan’s mind, that his love for art would eventually blossom into a career as a tattoo artist. However, seeing Miles’s artwork and the work environment that surrounded it was something Ryan adored, something that eventually lead him to getting a part time job underneath Miles’s mentorship.

Now in his thirties, Ryan owned his own tattoo parlor and watched as his artwork came to life every single day. He had a rather loyal customer base that would always request him to draw up their newest set of ink, some even recommending friends and adding more people to Ryan’s clientele. It had become a dream come true for him, and he only wished his father could have seen it.

**

Ryan knows he’s being creepy. He’s pretty sure if Geoff was here right now, which thank _god_ he wasn’t, he would never hear the end about how completely creepy he was being. Ryan wouldn’t even deny it, either. Yet, despite how much he knows that he’s being weird, he can’t bring himself to stop staring and do something about it.

He had every intention of entering Achievement Coffee and ordering another of whatever Jeremy had made him the week before. A strange concoction that he never actually got an answer as to what was in it, but all he knew was that the flavor was divine. Instead of going in he’s standing at the large window that faces the barista station, watching as Jeremy works.

 _God,_ he’s going to get the cops called on him for being a stalker _._

“Are you gonna go in?”

Ryan jumps at Jack’s sudden appearance at his side. She looks as though she just got off shift, her black apron already hanging over her shoulder and a to go cup of coffee steaming in her hand. Her eyebrow is raised as she takes Ryan in, observing him. More and likely she was judging him for being exactly what Ryan knew he already was.

“Um, yeah?” Ryan attempts to open the door to the shop, only to push instead of pull. Jack snorts. “Was just, uh, observing. I’m going in now.” He manages to pull the door open this time, ignoring Jack’s laughter as he enters the warm atmosphere and heads to the front counter.

Achievement is slightly busier than when he usually arrives. Most of the tables surrounding the windows are full of various strangers, some with laptops typing away while others share a laugh over their own mugs. Jeremy looks at ease surrounded by the chaos of chattering customers, constant movement around the machines, though there is a small sheen of sweat forming across his forehead.

He’s wearing a red, short sleeved shirt today, with a black snapback resting on his head. A little tuft of brown hair sticks out from the front, and Ryan is now back to staring like the complete fool that he is.

Maybe it was completely ridiculous, to have a crush on someone you only see a couple of times in the week. There was a good chance that Jeremy didn’t think about him as more than just a friendly customer, a regular that he occasionally serves and has a casual conversation with once and a while. Jeremy made him strange concoctions, sure, but Ryan couldn’t be the only one he would do that for.

“Ryan!” Jeremy greets him from the register, where he has just handed a rather delicious looking pastry to a young girl. A streak of flour decorates the front of his black apron, a little bit also dusting the tip of his nose. “Was wondering when you were going to come in. You’ve been standing outside for an awful long time, thought you might have been lost.”

Ryan chuckles nervously. “Yeah, it’s been a rather long day for me. Must have just spaced out.” He pulls his wallet out from his back pocket, sliding his card towards Jeremy. “Make me what you made me last week, that surprise drink? I really liked it.”

In an unexpected move, Jeremy pushes Ryan’s card back towards him with a grin. “I’m making you a new drink today, one that you’ll like better. Since I am using you as my guinea pig, you don’t have to pay.” He grabs a few ingredients, setting them down on the counter and biting his lip. “You’re not allergic to anything, are you?”

Ryan blinks. “Um, why?”

Jeremy laughs, beginning his work on Ryan’s newest surprise drink. “Well I don’t want to accidentally send you to the hospital if I end making something with peanuts or bananas. Sue me for being protective over my customers.” He sets a to go cup near the steamer, once again looking back at Ryan. “So, are you?”

Ryan shakes his head. “As far as I am aware, there is nothing that will make me have an allergic reaction. Go wild.”

Watching Jeremy at work is fascinating. While Ryan feels at home within his tattoo shop, he can tell that Jeremy is at home within the four walls of Achievement Coffee. He navigates the workspace with swift movements, paying close attention to the area surrounding him, which includes Gavin nearly colliding with him to hand a customer their order. Ryan can’t help but chuckle as Jeremy nearly sends the half-done drink down the front of Gavin’s apron, earning a squawk from the man.

“I present to you,” Jeremy announces, clearing his throat as he sets down the finished drink in front of Ryan. “The Ryan.”

It smells delightful, that was for sure. A soft mix of chocolate and caramel invades Ryan’s nose, along with hints of peanut butter. He takes a quick drink, nearly scalding his tongue in the process, but he doesn’t care as his taste buds celebrate the delicious new taste.

“You continue to blow me away,” Ryan tells him, adoring the way Jeremy hides a shy smile. It’s only when they are this close that Ryan can see a small scar at the top of Jeremy’s lip. “I also appreciate you naming something so incredible after me. Are you going to add this to your secret menu?”

Jeremy scoffs. “I believe I told you before that there is no secret menu here. Don’t go spreading that shit around, pal.” Once again, he pushes away Ryan’s credit card, shaking his head. “Your money is no good here, Ryan. Seriously, if you continue to act as my willing guinea pig as I force my creations onto you, don’t pay a single cent.”

Ryan rolls his eyes, pulling out a couple of bills and stuffing them into the tip jar. “Don’t you _dare_ reach your hand into there and pull those out. At least give them to Jack, for working her ass of on those pastries.”

Jeremy mocks offense to Ryan’s words, holding a hand up to his heart as he gasps. “Are you saying that I don’t deserve a tip?”

“You want a tip?” Ryan plays along, leaning forward towards the counter with a devilish grin. He’s close enough to Jeremy that he can smell the man’s subtle cologne, musky with hints of pine, overall _Jeremy._ “You should wear shirts like that more often.”

The smirk that appears on Jeremy’s face in contrast to the normally blushing demeanor is not necessarily the reaction Ryan expected from his comment, but he certainly wasn’t about to complain. “Could say the same to you.” He pokes Ryan’s tattooed arm with his index finger, eyes sparkling. “I really like the artwork on your arm. Did you design all of those yourself or did another artist do this?”

Outside of Ryan’s usual group of friends, mostly Geoff and Jack, no one really seemed to care much about his tattoo sleeve enough to ask any questions regarding it. Most of the looks he got around town were ones of disinterest, or some would simply dismiss it in favor of ogling Geoff’s wide array of tattoos on _both_ of his arms. It didn’t bother him any, but Jeremy’s interest in learning about _something_ in terms of his tattoos has his chest feeling warm. “I designed all of these, except for this one.” He turns his arm to display the inside of his bicep, where a flaming skull rest. “An old friend of mine had a larger version of this displayed in his shop, where I got my first tattoo. I ended up really liking it and wanted to get it somewhere.” He points at the cogs, his first. “This was actually my first one.”

Jeremy reaches forward, fingertips tracing the lines and sending a shiver down Ryan’s spine at the contact. “You don’t seem like someone who would be interested in mechanics. I guess that’s me assuming things though, so I apologize.”

Ryan shakes his head. “I’m not incredibly interested in the inner workings of mechanics, no, but no need to apologize. It was something I came up with when I was a teenager about being part of a machine, wanting to be my own part. It’s silly now, honestly.” He thinks back to his mother’s words when he first arrived home with the tattoo and feels ashamed. “I did something with one of the resident mechanics around here though, Michael Jones?”

“You did that?” Jeremy gapes. “He shows off that tattoo whenever he is in here! I keep forgetting to ask him to give me the name of the artist.” He pulls back from where his fingers rested against Ryan’s wrist, but the warmth of his finger tips lingers on Ryan’s inked skin. “Now that I know who created it, I know for sure where I need to go for my next tattoo.”

Ryan must admit that the idea of Jeremy coming into his tattoo shop has him nervous. It wasn’t that Ryan had any doubts about his artistry and creating a tattoo Jeremy would love, more of a matter of the fact that it was _Jeremy_ that he would be inking as apposed to someone else. Ryan prided himself in being a steady hand with his work, making the best of the canvas he has before him and giving the most satisfactory artwork he could provide.

He already struggles with speaking to Jeremy about basic things without over complicating things, and the thought of having to sit with Jeremy for more than an hour and focus on not shaking from nerves from just being around the man was bound to be a disaster.

Swallowing down the nerves, Ryan displays a sparkling grin, one that Jeremy returns. “Now that, I will be looking forward to.” He goes to reach for his to go cup, take another drink of the fantastic concoction Jeremy has created just for him, when the barista swipes it from his hands. He doesn’t bother fighting for it when he sees Jeremy pull a marker out from the jar near the register, scribbling something along the Styrofoam before placing the cup back down.

“I’ll be seeing you tomorrow?” Jeremy presumes, and Ryan can’t help but grin when he sees the number scrawled across the cup as he reaches for it, Jeremy’s name above it with a smiley face.

He takes a quick drink from the cup, smacking his lips. “Definitely.”

**

“And you nag about _me_ being late,” Meg, Ryan’s best friend and one of the other tattoo artists at his shop, comments as he comes through the front door, the bell chiming loudly to announce his presence to the rest of the shop. He offers her an apologetic smile as he heads towards his office in the back of the shop, but he can hear her footsteps approaching regardless. “Get held up at that coffee shop again?”

Ryan merely sips from his cup innocently, the sweet taste still just as satisfying despite the drink being lukewarm. He’s ready to make an explanation, make up something along the lines of speaking with a future customer about his own tattoos when Meg gasps and snatches the cup from his hands, smirking at Jeremy’s phone number along the side. “Barista boy asked you out, didn’t he?” She grins, handing the cup back with a look of satisfaction.

“He just gave me his number,” Ryan explains, setting the cup down and pulling out his own phone to plug the number into his contacts. “He’s interested in coming in for a tattoo sometime, nothing else beyond that I’m afraid.”

Meg rolls her eyes at him, settling down in the second office chair. “Please. Going off what Geoff has said about the guy, it sounds as though he is completely into you.” She points at the smiley face at the end of Jeremy’s name on the cup. “No one who just wants a tattoo would put something so incredibly flirtatious at the end of their name, Rye.”

“He’s just friendly,” Ryan responds lamely, ignoring his quickened heartbeat at the sight of the smiley face again. He refused to see Jeremy’s kindness as anything more than platonic, regardless of the clear evidence he knew was there. There was a chance that Jeremy made custom drinks for countless regulars that came across the shop, that he gave special attention to everyone to connect with his customers. There was no need for Ryan to get his hopes up that this was something more.  

“I’m sure that he is,” Meg confirms, reaching her hand out to rest comfortingly on Ryan’s knee. “And you my friend, are completely oblivious when it comes to clear and honest _flirting._ That is another fact.”

“Don’t you have appointments?” Ryan questions in a desperate attempt to change the subject. “Because I sure do, so I think this conversation is over.” He gets up from his office chair, pushing his friend out the door much to her amusement. He ignores the winning smirk she wears as she skips off towards her work station, leaving Ryan standing awkwardly in the doorway of his office with the realization that, yeah, he _was_ oblivious.

Walking back into his office, he grabs his phone and texts the number on his cup. _Hey, it’s Ryan. When do you want to schedule a session?_

He refrains for going any further. Maybe there was a chance that Jeremy was flirting with him back at the shop, but what if Meg was wrong and Ryan made a complete fool of himself by reciprocating? The last thing he wants is to hear about his stupidity from Jack the next time he goes by Achievement Coffee, Jeremy probably having gone and told her about how her friend was a complete loser who thought he had a chance-

His phone vibrates before he could further dig himself into that hole, and he scrambles to unlock it to see the reply.

_Jeremy: Wherever you can squeeze me in, I can be there ;)_

There has never been a time Ryan has hated having a full schedule than he does now. Being kept busy throughout the day was normally something Ryan thrived on to prevent himself from growing bored while at work, but now looking at the schedule laid out in front of him, each day filled with clients anticipating their next session, has Ryan disappointed.

There was the possibility of an after-hours session; it wouldn’t be the first time that Ryan has offered a session after closing time for a person, though it was mostly for those who he had a soft spot for. Jack had her first tattoo session after hours, as did Geoff. The thought of having one with Jeremy had Ryan nervous once again, but at least he wouldn’t have to deal with the possibility of Meg interrupting and embarrassing him.

He bites down on his lower lip and takes the chance.

_Ryan: Would you be okay with a session after hours? I’m booked all week :(_

The answer is almost instant.

_Jeremy: I don’t mind ;)_

It was official, Jeremy Dooley was going to be the death of him. With a quick text confirming the appointment, with Ryan looking it over countless times to make sure he didn’t sound like a completely lovestruck fool over the phone, Ryan found himself looking forward to the next few days.

Plenty of time to prepare himself for a two-hour session with his crush.

**

“I need you to promise me something.”

Those were not the words Ryan expected to come from Jeremy’s mouth at the beginning of their session a few days later. The barista had the sketch of his tattoo in his hands, one that he had told Ryan he had been working on in preparation for the next time he decided to get inked. Ryan had already informed him that he would possibly take artistic liberty when it came to the final product, allow Jeremy to see the stencil he would use to make sure he would be satisfied. However, he had to admit he was anticipating what Jeremy had for him to work with.

“Anything,” Ryan responds to Jeremy’s request, offering a comforting smile to the nervous man. It seems to ease Jeremy’s nerves, Ryan able to see him visibly relax as he looks down at his sketch. “I promise I won’t say anything about the sketch, Jeremy. I’m sure it’s wonderful.”

Jeremy sighs, handing over the sketch while asking, “Please don’t laugh.”

The sketch is rough, that was for certain. The drawing was a little smudged from corrections, but overall Ryan could see the detail and dedication Jeremy put into the idea. There was a lot that Ryan could work with overall, but he knows that isn’t what Jeremy was referring to when it came to not be mocking the drawing. “You like Spyro?”

Jeremy grins softly, but his eyes are not meeting Ryan’s. “I loved it as a kid, still do as an adult. Definitely one of my favorite video game characters, if not my all time favorite.” He extends his arm out towards Ryan, circling the empty space on his forearm towards his elbow. “I was thinking of putting it here, that way it is on display but not as in your face as my family crest.” He lifts the sleeve of his short sleeve shirt up to show his shoulder, where the Dooley family crest rests. Ryan can’t help but admire the detail within the crest, little things that Jeremy added himself to personalize it.

He looks back down at the sketch of Spyro, and smiles. “It’s going to look incredible, I can see it now. How about I do some refining on it and then we will decide if we like the final product?” He looks up at the clock, seeing just how much time they have and bites down on his lip. “It might take a minute, do you have anywhere you need to be while I try and sketch out an idea?”

Jeremy shakes his head, but the loud rumbling of his stomach says differently. Ryan himself hasn’t eaten since his lunch break a few hours back and wonders just how long it has been since Jeremy has managed to have a meal. Achievement Coffee was exceptionally busy when he went in on his own break, and he couldn’t imagine how the rest of the day carried on. “How about I call us some take out? That way we won’t both die of hunger before I can properly get my hands on you?”

His face flushes red the minute the words leave his mouth, cursing himself for even saying something so suggestive. Jeremy doesn’t seem all too bothered by his wording however, instead quirking an eyebrow and pushing his chair forward a little more to be closer into Ryan’s space. “Well, I certainly don’t want to miss out on _that._ I could go for pizza, if you would like?”

Ryan nods, choosing against speaking again in fear of something even worse coming out. Jeremy chuckles, pulling out his phone from his pants pocket. “Any requests? I was thinking just some pepperoni and mushroom, maybe some garlic knots?”

“I like garlic knots,” Ryan tells him, looking back at the sketch and reaching for his pencils. “I’m not really picky when it comes to pizza, so just order whatever you’d like.”

“Even pineapple?” Jeremy asks, a hint of disgust in his voice that has Ryan chuckling. Off Ryan’s gentle nod, Jeremy makes a gagging sound that nearly has Ryan tumbling out of his chair. “Oh man, I’m into a guy that likes _pineapple_ on his _pizza._ I really need to reevaluate.”

Ryan nearly draws a sharp, grey line across Spyro at Jeremy’s words, startled by the sudden confession that he doesn’t even know the man is aware he has openly said. Jeremy simply carries on with placing their pizza order, as if he _didn’t_ just admit that he liked Ryan as more than just a friend. There was a chance that it wasn’t as big of a deal to Jeremy as it was to Ryan, and the last thing he wanted to do was draw attention to it when there was the chance Jeremy didn’t want to.

Instead he settles into finishing up Spyro, ignoring the overwhelming urge to get up from the chair and pull Jeremy into a soul shattering kiss.

Pizza arrives thirty minutes later, with their hunger having grown to the point where Ryan nearly tosses his pencils across the room in order to grab a slice and Jeremy is all but flinging himself out of the chair he’s settled himself into the past few minutes to do the same. Once Ryan has a garlic knot stuffed into his cheeks and a slice of pizza nearby on a paper plate, he looks over Spyro had grins at the product, holding it up for Jeremy to look at.

“Born to glide?” Jeremy questions, pointing at the lettering above Spyro’s head.

Ryan shrugs. “If you are not all that into lettering, we don’t have to include it, but I figured it would be a nice touch to it. Of course, it is your decision as to what you want on your skin.” He hands the finished drawing over to Jeremy, who looks at it with a glistening smile and an even brighter twinkle in his eye. “Do you like it?”

“It’s perfect,” Jeremy confirms, handing the drawing back. “Now, how about we finish up this nice dinner and then you can, as you said before, ‘get your hands on me’?”

Ryan groans, but the reaction has Jeremy laughing. Ryan was glad at least someone was getting amusement over his stupid flub. “Not my fault you make me all kinds of nervous, Dooley. Just finish your stupid pizza.”

**

“Ah fuck,” Jeremy mutters, biting down on his lower lip as Ryan continues his work. “Not that I don’t think you are, but could you take it a little easier on me?”

Ryan offers an apologetic smile, pulling the gun away and meeting Jeremy’s eyes. His grip remains on Jeremy’s wrist, holding the arm in place. “If I took it any easier on you, I would be tattooing the air. Just a little longer and it will be done, promise.”

“Well then I need to be distracted,” Jeremy hisses, Ryan giving him an assuring squeeze to the wrist. “How long have you owned this place?”

Ryan hums. “Coming up on five years now. How long have you had Achievement Coffee?”

“A while now, started off as just a worker and worked my way up to owning the place. Revamped the entire place, renamed it, changed the focus from just plain coffee to a place where people could -fuck ow- come in and enjoy themselves.” He releases a breath. “Why name the place _Malicious?”_

That earns a chuckle. “I just liked the word, really. I don’t intended on harming anyone who comes through these doors, at least not if I can help it.” He squeezes Jeremy’s wrist once more. “Only a few more minutes, okay? You can make it, I promise.”

Jeremy takes a deep breath, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. Ryan rubs his thumb against the inside of Jeremy’s wrist attempting to ease the man, and it seems to do the trick as Jeremy’s breathing becomes steadier.

After another twenty minutes, Ryan pulls away with a smile. “Looks pretty damn good if you ask me.”

Jeremy looks down at the tattoo, admiring two hours worth of work that Ryan dedicated to him. The finale design is perfect, including the lettering Ryan included above Spyro’s head. While only a simple black outline for his favorite dragon, the final product is a large improvement on the rough sketch Jeremy brought in.

“It’s wonderful,” Jeremy tells him, unable to help the smile that grows on his face. “Thank you so much, Ryan. It’s better than I could have asked for.”

“That means I’ve done my job correctly,” Ryan tells him, pulling his phone out from his pocket. “You mind if I get a picture of it for my portfolio?”

“Not at all.”

Shortly after, Ryan begins to wrap it with a bandage, his hand resting once more against Jeremy’s wrist. He doesn’t mean to keep his grip there, doesn’t necessarily need to in order to wrap the tattoo, but he finds himself wanting to keep holding Jeremy in way, in whatever was he can. The session was over now, and they were bound to return to their normal routine of flirting over coffee and accidental innuendos that Ryan can’t help but blurt out from time to time.

In order to escape his thoughts, he leads Jeremy to the front of the shop and pulls his jacket on. He can see Jeremy pulling out his wallet from the corner of his eyes and chuckles, holding a hand up. “No, I am not going to charge you for this. If you continue to provide me with excellent coffee creations, the last thing I am going to do is charge you in return. Act of kindness, think of it as that.” Once Jeremy has put his wallet back into his back pocket, Ryan continues. “All I ask if for you to moisturize the area regularly, all that nonsense. You’ve done this before, I’m sure you know the drill.”

Jeremy nods, pulling his own jacket on over himself and heading towards the front door that Ryan has unlocked for him. Once the door is open, the bell above it ringing softly to announce his exit to the soon to be empty store, he turns back. “See you tomorrow?”

As if there was anywhere else Ryan wanted to be. “Tomorrow.”

The minute Jeremy is out of eye sight, Ryan thumps his head against the front counter. God, he was absolutely _fucked._


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This may or may not be the last part? I'm debating doing one last part for Mavin, but that will all really depend on if it is wanted or not. Let me know!

Michael pauses from where he had previously been finishing the paint job on one of Geoff’s motorcycles, and gives Jeremy a exasperated look. “Look, Jeremy. I consider you one of my good friends. I’ve known you for some time now. I can assure you, however, that as much as I like you, I won’t hesitate to punch you in the throat if you don’t _shut the fuck up.”_

Michael’s garage, one of the more popular ones on this side of Los Santos, wasn’t exactly busy during this time of the day. There had been a few people coming in and out, some of them more of the sketchy sort, but overall the day has been dragging on endlessly. The same situation was happening with Achievement Coffee, which is why Jeremy had decided to leave Jack the shop for the time being so he could come visit Michael, mostly to catch up with his friend.

Michael, however, was not interested in what Jeremy wanted to discuss.

It wasn’t that Jeremy was oblivious to how annoying he was being about the entire situation. He had already bored Jack to death with this discussion throughout the week, enough to make her all but kick him out of the shop earlier today just so he would stop talking about it. It was just that once he started, Jeremy simply couldn’t _stop._

That doesn’t mean Michael’s words don’t have him frowning, looking at Michael with a pout. “Well, what should I do about it? Jack didn’t exactly offer me anything sound to go off.”

Michael sighs. “Look, I’ve known Ryan for a few years now. The guy is incredibly awkward to begin with, but when he’s into someone he turns into even more of a ridiculous fool. I can promise you right now, Lil J, that Ryan is one hundred percent _interested.”_

Jeremy nibbles down on his lower lip, thinking about the tattoo session a few weeks back. There was a definite chance he had come on far too strong, his flirting always have been a little more forward than he anticipates it to be. There was just that satisfaction of seeing Ryan get completely flustered at Jeremy and his attempts at being flirtatious, and Jeremy had simply wanted to continue with the routine in making Ryan blush uncontrollably.

Though, given the fact that Ryan had been absent from his normally daily visits to Achievement Coffee for the past few days, Jeremy was worried that he had completely ruined any chance he had with the tattoo artist.

Jack had offered little insight into her friend’s absence, citing that there might have been a chance that Ryan was doing more out of town travels to recruit more clientele for his shop. Geoff would come in every now and then during Ryan’s absence with even less help regarding the man’s whereabouts, simply only stopping in to speak with Jack about things and take a muffin for the road.

Jeremy knows he shouldn’t be panicking as much about Ryan being gone, but he can’t help but allow the intrusive thoughts take over and continuously blame himself for being the reason Ryan was no longer coming in.

“I just wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if I scared him off by coming on too strong,” Jeremy pouts, settling into one of the stools provided in the garage. Michael returns to where he was working on Geoff’s bike. “I know I’m overreacting, I was just hoping one of you knew what was going on.”

“I would say there is a chance he got tired of having your coffee, but I know that isn’t possible,” Michael responds, eyes never leaving his work. Jeremy watches Michael work quietly, the colors distracting him from his thoughts for a moment. Michael stops. “You know how I stopped coming in for a few days after that, um, incident with Gavin?”

Jeremy remembers that day well. It had been a rather slow day at Achievement, Gavin and Michael having their usual flirtatious conversations that they normally had daily, only for Michael to storm out after a few minutes and a rather crestfallen Gavin moving to the back of the shop where he remained for the rest of his shift. Gavin had never given him an answer as to what had happened, and the remainder of his shifts for the week were filled with silence and a rather mopey Gavin.

Jeremy nods, allowing Michael to continue. “It was because I had asked Gavin out on a date, and he told me no. Told me he wasn’t interested in me in that way, which was fine. I guess I had misread the flirting is all.” He takes a deep breath. “I didn’t want to talk to him after that because I was completely embarrassed about the whole thing. I felt like I made an ass of myself.”

“So, you think Ryan is avoiding the shop because _he_ might have ruined things?” Jeremy questions, and Michael shrugs. “He was a little awkward during our session, but not more than the usual amount.”

“Ryan’s awkward no matter what he does,” Michael assures him, looking away from Geoff’s bike and facing Jeremy. “If it helps at all, Gavin and I are on speaking terms again. He came to me a couple of days ago and I apologized. We are still friends, regardless of how I feel. I’m pretty sure things between you and Ryan are going to be just fine. I promise, Jeremy.”

**

It had been a rather slow day at Achievement when Ryan finally stepped back into Jeremy’s life, only a few days after his conversation with Michael about the ordeal. Jeremy had already sent home a few of his workers for the day, assuring them that he could handle himself if things were to get busy later. Jack had taken her fifteen-minute break only a few minutes ago when Geoff had arrived, leaving Jeremy to be the only worker in the shop aside from Gavin, who was currently in the kitchen baking.

The bell above the door chimes, Jeremy having his back turned towards it as he works on cleaning the display case. His voice is still cheerful as he calls out, “Welcome to Achievement Coffee! I will be with you in a moment!”

“Slow day?”

He nearly smacks his head against the top of the display case at the sound of a familiar voice. He moves himself out from the case, looking up to see Ryan standing by the register, hands in his pockets as he offers up an apologetic smile. Despite the warm weather outside he’s wearing a black and blue leather jacket, covering up his sleeve of tattoos that Jeremy adores. His hair is slicked back into a ponytail, hands stuffed in his pockets.

“For the past few days, yeah,” Jeremy admits, putting aside the rag he was cleaning with and stepping towards Ryan. “Been kind of nice, having enough time to clean the place a bit and relax for a while.” He doesn’t’ bring up just how much he missed having Ryan around the shop every day, nor does he bring up how he’s been losing his mind wondering why the man hasn’t been around.

“I bet,” Ryan smiles, biting his lower lip. “Sorry I haven’t been in lately. I’ve had a lot going on at the shop, had to go out of town for a few days. I’ve – “He pauses, looking up at Jeremy through his lashes. “I’ve missed you.”

“Did I do something?” Jeremy blurts out, unable to stop himself. Ryan opens his mouth to respond, but Jeremy doesn’t give him a chance to before he’s spilling out more of his concerns from the past few days, the past couple of _weeks._ “Did I say something during our session that I shouldn’t have? I just need to know if I fucked this because I read things completely wrong.”

“I promise my absence wasn’t because of you,” Ryan assures him, and while Michael had basically told him the same thing, it feels more comforting hearing it from Ryan himself. “I wanted to text you before I left, but I was worried I had fucked things between us during our session with how, er, awkward I was.”

Jeremy laughs, leaning against the counter with a comforting smile. “I thought I had fucked it up with being too forward. If anything, your awkwardness sealed my fate.”

Ryan raises an eyebrow at Jeremy’s words, himself leaning forward with an interested gaze. “Your fate? What is that exactly?”

Jeremy pulls back, pushing up the divider between the counter and the front as he steps in front of Ryan, counter no longer blocking him from pulling Ryan’s body into his and pressing their lips together in a long-awaited kiss. Ryan let’s out a soft noise of surprise, but his hands find Jeremy’s back and pull the man closer to him, returning the kiss with equal enthusiasm. The kiss melts away the anxiety Jeremy has felt the past few days, and the way Ryan’s hands grip the back of his shirt has his heart thundering wildly in his chest.

“You do realize we are still open, right?”

Jeremy pulls away from Ryan quickly, flipping around to find Gavin standing behind the counter with his arms crossed and flour decorating the front of him. He looks unimpressed, and Jeremy can only offer his friend a sheepish smile for his actions. “Sorry Gav, couldn’t, um, help myself?”

Gavin rolls his eyes at the response, looking towards Ryan with an unamused expression. “Good to see you back. Jeremy here wouldn’t shut up about you.”

“Really now?” Ryan laughs, wrapping his arms around Jeremy from behind and resting his chin on top of Jeremy’s head. “Good to know I was missed.”

Jeremy blushes, relaxing into Ryan’s arms before looking back at Gavin. “You can go on break, you know. Jack should be back soon enough.” He ignores the fact that Gavin rolls his eyes once more, the Brit retreating to the kitchen without another word. Jeremy turns around in Ryan’s arms, admiring the amused grin that takes over the man’s face. “So, you might want to order something before Jack gets back. Last thing I need is jokes about me not being on the menu.”

That makes Ryan laugh, kissing Jeremy once more before pulling away. “What about the secret menu, huh? Are you on that by chance?”

“Oh, you are very lucky you are cute.”

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr at cherryraindrops!!


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